What Shauna’s bisexual awakening in Yellowjackets means for the show

Can any hunting game ever go right when it's about sacrificing someone to a supernatural entity?

But this instalment, which premieres on Valentine's Day, of all days, begins on a much more upbeat note. The narrative has jumped forward in time to spring, when the all-female football team are thriving after building an idyllic settlement for themselves.

As teen Natalie (Sophie Thatcher) is reluctantly adjusting to her Antler Queen duties, Shauna (Sophie Nélisse) couldn't be less impressed by the hierarchical structure that has emerged within the group.

Further alienated and bereft, she forms a surprise alliance with Melissa (Jenna Burgess), bonding over their frustrations with the others – and sharing a passionate kiss at knifepoint in the second episode, Dislocation.

It's hardly shocking that Shauna is attracted to women, though this side of her sexual identity had only been teased through her co-dependent relationship with her best friend Jackie (Ella Purnell).

Graduating from her background role, Melissa is not just filling in for Jackie now that she’s no longer around. This mostly quiet Yellowjacket is drawn to Shauna's lone wolf demeanour and seems to revere her grief.

And, most notably, she challenges Shauna when she informs her that she's not scared of her, like the other girls are. From there, the sexual tension between them grows to palpable levels that reaches a climax when Shauna spots Melissa spying on her as she's visiting her baby's freshly dug grave.

Shauna, who's holding a hunting knife to Melissa's throat, is taken aback after her teammate kisses her in a defiant response. She reciprocates with urgency, resulting in an eager make-out session, yet she never drops the blade.

Back in 2022, young Shauna star Sophie Nélisse confirmed her character was queer in an interview with Teen Vogue. Not much was said explicitly about her bisexuality after that, but its fans weren't concerned that the show could be queerbaiting because Yellowjackets may be one of the queerest mainstream series on TV right now.

It openly addresses Taissa (Jasmin Savoy Brown/Tawny Cypress) and Van's (Liv Hewson/Lauren Ambrose) beautiful romance in both timelines, as well as Taissa's strained marriage to Simone (Rukiya Bernard) and Coach Ben's (Steven Kreuger) homosexuality.

These storylines aside, the series is rich in homoerotic subtext, ranging from intensely physical games of tag to unspoken sparks flying between the girls stranded in the Canadian wilderness.

The Yellowjackets are brought together not solely by the intimate nature of team sports like football, but also by the forced proximity in the wake of the plane crash.

Disaster can be a powerful accelerator for desire, and it was but a matter of time before this extended sojourn in the woods would bring about a queer awakening for some of these horny teens. The absence of societal structures and conventions that may have held some of them back turns the wilderness into a safe space where they can be their authentic selves.

Shauna was one of the most likely candidates for a queer coming-of-age. After all, her consuming attachment to Queen Bee and team captain Jackie was riddled with petty jealousies, physical touch and longing stares.

In her journal entries, Shauna claimed her best friend made her feel invisible. For her part, Jackie argued that Shauna sleeping with her boyfriend — whom she marries years later —was but a way to feel more like her: not just seen, but popular and beloved.

In her fury, Jackie was seemingly oblivious to how Shauna's betrayal was an ill-conceived attempt to feel closer to her, with the cannibalistic epilogue of their friendship bringing that assimilation to a hyper-literal, twisted level.

But in season 3, Shauna's bisexuality becomes canon – and seeing the kiss episode go out to Bikini Kill’s WLW anthem Rebel Girl will dispel any doubts.

Read more:

• Yellowjackets season 3 review – Back to its unpredictable and brutal best
• Yellowjackets star Christina Ricci teases "shocking" and "brutal" season 3

Chapter three is expected to dive into this facet of Shauna’s identity as she steps firmly out of Jackie's shadow with choices that are more than a mere reflection of her friend's actions, such as her dynamic with Melissa.

And much like Jackie haunting Shauna well into her adult years, her wilderness fling with Melissa is set to impact the 2020s timeline as well.

In the final moments of episode 2, the show's alternating editing implies that Melissa survived the wilderness and has come back to blackmail her ex-lover, who some believe will be played by Hilary Swank.

While the Oscar-winning star's role hasn't been revealed yet, the trailer includes a sneak peek at Swank sporting a nosebleed and muttering in disbelief to an unseen attacker: "You really are insane."

This sentence may well be directed at Shauna and could corroborate fans' speculations that she and Melissa are in for a reunion.

It's undeniable that Shauna is devoted to her daughter Callie (Sarah Desjardins), who has more in common with her mother than she first realised, while her husband Jeff (Warren Kole) provides Shauna with a warm embrace of normalcy that's miles away from her experiences in the wilderness. But ultimately, her domestic life and responsibilities lack the excitement of life-and-death situations that Melissa could offer, or the singularly unique connection that they shared.

If the two exes do come face to face though, it won't be a purely romantic rendezvous, if at all.

Lynskey's character may have softened up since her days in the woods, but she's still someone who can murder her side guy in cold blood and proceed to dutifully dismember him. What would she do to an ex threatening to expose her?

This season will have guts and secrets spilled in equal measure, as its tagline promises, and it sounds like Shauna and Melissa — or should we say, Shaulissa? — will be central to it.

And honestly, we’re buzzing.

Yellowjackets season 3 will stream on Paramount Plus from Friday 14th February 2025.

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